Skip to main content

Environmental

Importance of Environmental Planning

Environmental considerations are critical to Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) as they play a vital role in ensuring the sustainability and health of the communities they serve. These considerations encompass a broad range of issues, including air and water quality, climate change, land use, natural resources, and wildlife. MPOs are responsible for developing long-term transportation plans that balance the mobility needs of their region with environmental impacts. This requires integrating environmental factors into decision-making processes, considering alternative transportation modes and routes, and minimizing the environmental impact of transportation infrastructure. By prioritizing environmental considerations, MPOs can help promote a healthier, more sustainable, and more livable future for the communities they serve.

Resiliency in Transportation

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) defines resilience as “the ability to anticipate, prepare for, or adapt to conditions or withstand, respond to, or recover rapidly from disruptions.” This can include the ability to:

  • Resist hazards or withstand impacts from weather events and natural disasters.
  • Reduce the magnitude or duration of impacts of a disruptive weather event or natural disaster.
  • Have absorptive capacity, adaptive capacity, and recoverability to decrease project vulnerability to weather events or other natural disasters.
  • Consider incorporation of natural infrastructure.

AAMPO Resiliency Study

The Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (AAMPO) undertook a study assessing the resilience of the transportation system in the region to understand all potential natural factors that could impact the system now and into the future, and identify a set of actions or investments that could ensure the viability of the system as the region grows.

The region has experienced transportation disruptions before, and the effects of those disruptions can impact community accessibility, economic viability, and even military readiness. Not only does AAMPO house several critical infrastructure types, but it also houses a large and diverse population. Of the more than two million residents in the region, 42% of residents live in census tracts that are disadvantaged. Whether lacking access to reliable transportation or suffering financial burdens, over 900,000 people in the AAMPO region are hit disproportionately hard when roadways flood and temperatures swell.

This study explored these concerns and how natural factors could impact transportation infrastructure in the region. This report also makes recommendations to build on this study and develop a Transportation Resilience Improvement Plan, including prioritized regional projects, for AAMPO and partner agencies.

image showing the hazards assessed in the Resiliency Study

Read the Study:

Executive SummaryFull Report

PROTECT Grant

In April 2024, the Alamo Area MPO was awarded a $485,000 grant from the Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-Saving Transportation (PROTECT) program. These funds will be utilized to develop a Transportation Resiliency Improvement Plan (TRIP), with the AAMPO Resiliency Study serving as the foundation for this plan.

Stay Informed!